schismatic 1 of 2

adjective

variants also schismatical
Definition of schismaticnext
as in sectarian

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schismatic

2 of 2

noun

as in separatist

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of schismatic
Adjective
Such was the case this past weekend, when tens of millions of fans keyed in on the denouement of the college basketball season at the expense of lesser spectacles such as spring football and one notoriously schismatic pro golf startup. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 9 Apr. 2025 This action will constitute 'a schismatic act,' and 'formal adherence to the schism constitutes a grave offense against God and entails the excommunication established by the law of the Church'. — Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 May 2026 Given that Pakistan is home to over 20 million Shia Muslims—the second largest cohort in the world after Iran—open warfare with the only nation with more would be schismatic internally. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Apr. 2026 The Vatican said the consecrations, carried out without the pope’s approval and therefore in conflict with Catholic law, constituted a schismatic act that severed the society’s communion with Rome. — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 6 July 2026 Under church law, consecrating bishops without papal approval is considered a schismatic act and carries automatic excommunication for both the bishops being ordained and the bishop performing the ceremony. — Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026 Despite the original 1988 schismatic act, the group has continued to grow and today poses a threat to the Holy See as a parallel, ultra-Catholic, pre-Vatican II church. — ABC News, 30 June 2026 The highly organized religious extravaganza underscored the society’s international reach despite its schismatic outsider status, and appeal to conservative, traditionalist Catholics wary of the modern, secular world. — Jamey Keaten, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026 The Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which didn't recognize the authority of the Russian church and had been regarded as schismatic, was granted full recognition in 2019 by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Orthodoxy's top authority. — Compiled Bydemocrat-Gazette Stafffrom Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 26 Dec. 2023
Noun
Given that Pakistan is home to over 20 million Shia Muslims—the second largest cohort in the world after Iran—open warfare with the only nation with more would be schismatic internally. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for schismatic
  1. sectarian
  2. separatist
  3. renegade
Adjective
  • In the months after Assad’s fall in Syria, there were several eruptions of violence between groups loyal and opposed to al-Sharaa that spiraled into sectarian revenge attacks, in which Sunni Islamist fighters affiliated with the new government carried out attacks on Alawite and Druze civilians.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 June 2026
  • During the Biden administration, the DSA hemorrhaged members amid sectarian infighting, especially over Palestine.
    — Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 27 June 2026
Definition of sectarian
Noun
  • Iranian authorities, in turn, view armed Kurdish factions as separatist or terrorist threats, especially groups such as PJAK, which has clashed for years with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps along Iran’s western border.
    — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026
  • Christianity, then, is not a separatist, otherworldly faith.
    — Peter Wehner, The Atlantic, 10 June 2026
Definition of separatist
Noun
  • There are Sixties rock bands like the Sonics and the Small Faces, and pioneering hippie renegades like Love or the Thirteenth Floor Elevators.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 24 June 2026
  • The president can call out the army against seceding states and their renegade congresspeople.
    — Ann Manov, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026
Definition of renegade

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Cite this Entry

“Schismatic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/schismatic. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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